UNSC frigate
Halo: The Essential Visual Guide, page 76 * * * Halo 4: The Essential Visual Guide |width=* * * * |height= |engine=Deuterium nuclear fusion reactor |slipspace drive=Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine |shield gen=Yes (Post-war) |hull= Titanium-A armor |countermeasures= |armament=(Armament varies by class) *Magnetic Accelerator Cannon (1) * (1-3)Halo: The Fall of Reach, page 111 *Archer missile pods (40) 30 missiles/pod *Twin Point Defense Gun Turrets (12) *Twin Defensive Rail Gun Turrets (5) |complement=*Marines **ODSTs *D96-TCE Albatross dropships *M312 Elephant HRVs *M274 Ultra-Light All-Terrain Vehicles *Pelican dropships **D77-TC or D77H-TCI *GA-TL1 Longsword-class Interceptor *M808B Main Battle Tanks *M12 Light Reconnaissance Vehicles **M12G1 Light Anti-Armor Vehicle **M831 Troop Transport *AV-14 Attack VTOLs *Single Occupant Exoatmospheric Insertion Vehicles *Clarion Spy Drones (3) |capacity= |role=Protection of larger fleet ships |affiliation=UNSC Navy }} The UNSC frigate is a warship classification in the UNSC Navy. Although it significantly lacks armor and firepower compared to its larger cousin, the destroyer, the frigate is smaller and thus more maneuverable. It is cheaper to produce, allowing greater numbers to be fielded against the Covenant. UNSC frigates are capable of hovering in an atmosphere and even landing.Halo 3Halo: Reach While operating in-atmosphere, they are also capable of deploying vehicles and cargo directly onto the ground.Halo 3 level The Ark'' Background With current human technology, frigates are barely considered a match for even the smallest of Covenant warships. It is outclassed even by smaller Covenant ships, its armor is susceptible to enemy point-defense pulse lasers and Plasma Torpedos, and it is outfitted with substandard weaponry. Only en masse does the UNSC frigate give any UNSC fleet element an advantage against even a small number of Covenant Capital Ships. Despite this, two frigates, the and the played a crucial role in winning the Human-Covenant war, acting as the human flagships in the Battle of Installation 05 and the Battle of Installation 00, although both ended up being destroyed, with the In Amber Clad crashing into High Charity and Forward Unto Dawn being caught in The Portal while escaping the replacement for Installation 04. Layout The primary structural feature of all variants of the UNSC frigate is the MAC. The shaft containing the MAC spans approximately the foremost third of the the ship. Underneath the MAC lie communications antennae. The Bridge is located in the uppermost part of the ship, in the section directly to the rear of the MAC shaft. The majority of weapons systems are located in pods situated on both sides of the forward two thirds of the ship. The loading elevator and garage are located underneath the belly of the ship. The stern-most third of the ship is almost entirely devoted to the engines. A UNSC frigate also possess 12 SOEIV bays, located in the stern of the ship, which facilitate the deployment of Orbital Drop Shock Troopers. The bridge is significantly smaller than those of larger UNSC warships. The commanding officer sits in a chair, ahead of which are located the tactical and navigation consoles. Multiple stations are also located behind the commander's chair, though they have never been seen in use. The UNSC frigates are small compared to assault carriers of the Covenant. They are even capable of docking in the hangar of one, like in Halo 3 with and the Shadow of Intent. Variants There are multiple different variants of the UNSC frigate. Each of these variants, designed for different actions, are armed with various weapons and have different dimensions. *The has a large complement of dropships, ground forces, and ground vehicles. It is not as heavily armed or armored as other escort vessels of similar design. This implies a role as fleet support and troop carrier, although it is still capable of ship-to-ship combat. *The boasts additional Titanium-A armor plating and a larger number of point-defense guns than standard frigates. Another major difference that has been observed between light UNSC frigates and heavy frigates is the size of the main hangar on the underside of the vessel. *The was used as the post-war heavy frigate for the UNSC Navy. *The is best suited for planetary defense, fleet escort duties, and troop deployment. It has a smaller complement of vehicles than the Charon-class, and less armament than the Paris-class, effectively balancing it between troop transportation and fleet support. *Light frigates of the same class as the fill similar roles to a prowler's. They are used primarily on information gathering missions and for covert ops. It is presumably not as combat capable as the other frigate variants. It may be synonymous with one of the above light frigates. Specifications Dimensions Three frigate classes are of identifiable proportions. The largest, the Paris-class, is long, while the smallest, the Stalwart-class, is long. The Charon-class reaches long. The heights of all three are the same, all reaching . Propulsion Like other human ships, the UNSC frigate is powered by thermonuclear fusion reactors which use deuterium (a stable hydrogen isotope) as fuel. The engines almost certainly use the energy obtained from this process to heat some form of reaction propellant which is expelled out of rear-facing exhausts to generate thrust. There are four exhausts visible on frigates; two large and two small. For translight voyages, the frigate carries a Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine. Although they cannot be seen, it can be safely assumed that frigates also possess multiple maneuvering thrusters to adjust a vessel's attitude in three dimensions. Finally, frigates have several times been observed to hover in an atmosphere. It is possible that they vector thrust downward in order to accomplish this feat, but no downward-pointing exhaust nozzles are visible. It is also possible that they employ some form of Covenant-derived antigravity mechanism, or perhaps electrostatic or magnetic levitation, although it is unlikely due to the use of frigates prior to the war. The possible answer is the variance in thrust between the large and small exhausts. In order for the frigate to tilt upwards, the output of the large exhausts are decreased. In order to tilt downwards, the output of the small exhausts are decreased. In order to hover in position, the 4 exhausts on the ship are used to push against each other. The frigates' engines are their greatest strength as their greater speed and maneuverability afford them an advantage in movement as opposed to armor or firepower. Although slower than Covenant ships at FTL speeds, UNSC frigates can outpace Covenant ships at sublight speeds. The was seen to literally fly circles around a Covenant Corvette. Armament A typical UNSC frigate carries the following armament: *1 Magnetic Accelerator Cannon which is able to fire one round per charge. The MAC runs between one- and two-thirds of a frigate's total length. *3 Shiva-class Nuclear Missiles serves as heavy ordinance. *40 Archer missile pods which carry around thirty missiles per pod, adding up to a total of 1200 missiles. *12 50mm point defense guns function as the last line of defense against single ships and incoming missiles. Crew No precise figures are available regarding the crew of a frigate, but it is likely relatively small, (less than a hundred would be stationed on a frigate). Like larger ships, a detachment of Marines and sometimes ODSTs would be present on board. The crew number includes deck crews as well as the command crew, Marines, ODSTs, dropship pilots, and technical personnel. The number of personnel a single frigate is capable of housing numbers at least within the thousands.Halo: First Strike, page ?? Frigates have 24 three man escape pods on each side, and 32 on the bottom, making 80 in total. Therefore, 240 personnel can escape via this method. In 2552, Sergeant Major Avery Johnson was supposedly able to single handedly control the frigate to aid John-117, Cortana and Thel 'Vadam on the newly rebuilt Halo, though this was likely performed using an auto-pilot function. Similarly, Thel seemed to be able to pilot the Dawn at least somewhat after Cortana activated its engines and was removed from the systems, but in that case all he really had to do was point the ship at the Portal and fly into it which was likely a relatively simple task. An AI can monitor and regulate all critical functions without human intervention. Also, the was able to be staffed by only a small amount of crew, survivors of the Fall of Reach and the Battle of Installation 04 although in that case, Cortana was on board and was undoubtedly able to do much of the work. Superstructure The armor of a frigate is relatively poor compared to that of its larger cousins and counterparts such as the destroyer, with only 60cm of Titanium-A battleplating. However, due to its relatively light weight, the frigate's strength lies instead in maneuverability and speed. The frigate's relatively wide design is supported by structural support ribs, allowing it to perform orbital incursions.The Art of Halo 3 Furthermore, these ships also have external hard points on their hulls so that they can be towed by another ship or tow away another damaged ship. The frigates' light armor would be supplemented by the addition of energy shielding in the post-war era. Known frigates Trivia *In Halo: Reach, frigates share similarities with Halo 2 frigates when comparing Hangar sizes. *From Halo 2 to Halo: Reach, the frigates have a noticeable difference. The frigates in Halo 2 seem to have a bigger "bump" on the front of the frigate, near the MAC gun. *In Halo 3, it is possible for the frigate to release its hangar bay doors. *The frigate seems to be one of the few UNSC ships that can escape a planet's atmosphere without the aid of additional propulsion. Gallery and being destroyed at the First Battle of Harvest. File:UNSC Longsword and Frigate siz comaprisson.jpg|As shown here, Longsword fighters are not too large to be carried by frigates. File:10203554-Full.jpg|The Archer pods of a typical UNSC frigate. File:UNSC Frigate HEV drop hatches.jpg|UNSC frigate's HEV SOEIV hatches (along the center). File:DawnBase.jpg|A preview of UNSC frigate lowering its cargo bay for the insertion of ground forces and vehicles onto the battlefield. File:Mac.jpg|A preview of a UNSC frigate firing a round from its Magnetic Accelerator Cannon. File:In Amber Clad gives chase.jpg| going towards a when it's going slipspace. File:Reach mpbeta boneyard 02.jpg|A UNSC frigate, the , being taken apart, partially showing the ship's internal structure. File:HaloReach - FrigateWreck.png|A destroyed UNSC frigate over Reach from Halo: Reach Announcement Trailer, likely the UNSC Savannah destroyed by the Covenant Corvette Ardent Prayer. File:HaloReach - Space Battle.jpg|A [[YSS-1000|YSS-1000 "Sabre"-class starfighter]] and the engaging a over Reach. File:HaloReach - Frigates.jpg|Two UNSC frigates engaging Covenant ground forces in the Fall of Reach. File:Reach 596390 Medium.jpg|A UNSC frigate facing a . UNSC Savannah over Reach.jpg|The above Reach. File:UNSC_Savannah.jpg|The UNSC Savannah engaging a . reach_3023638_Full.jpg|The UNSC Savannah, docked with Anchor 9. IAC-tech.gif|UNSC frigate scaled. Ih_Frigate02_copy.jpg|UNSC frigate concept art by Bungie. Halo3_-_FrigateAssault.png|UNSC frigates attacking the Forerunner Dreadnaught. File:Reach 10501931 Full.jpg|Two frigates over Reach. Ffg-127.png|A destroyed frigate over New Mombasa. reach_15395310_Medium.jpg|A frigate fends off a . File:Frigate 3.jpg| flying through High Charity. Forward into dawn.jpg| landing on the Ark. File:Halo_4_Teaser_20110912-08335507.jpg|The Forward unto Dawn falling towards Requiem. File:Unsc_in_amber_clad.jpg|The UNSC In Amber Clad with its emblem. File:Scrapped frigates.jpg|Several scrapped frigates in the Aszod ship breaking yards. File:2 frigates.png|2 s escorting the . File:H4_Frigate.jpg|A post-war over Oban. File:UNSC Saratoga.jpg|A . H4 Frigate Concept.jpg|Concept art of a Halo 4 era frigate. Shielding.png| }} List of appearances Sources External *Stephen Loftus's extensive analysis of the UNSC frigate fr:Frégate d'UNSC Frigate Category:UNSC Frigate